NSMEN HAVE REASON TO REJOICE WITH NEW RECOMMENDATIONS

Come next year, National Servicemen (NSmen) may be able to access their work while doing In-Camp Training (ICT).

This was one of the recommendations by the Fifth Committee to Recognise the Contribution of Operationally Ready National Servicemen or RECORD V, which were announced at a press conference on 27 Aug at the new SAFRA Jurong clubhouse.

Allowing NSmen to take their company-configured laptops, blackberries and PDAs into their camps will better balance their military training and work commitments during ICT.

"Given the increasingly globalised nature of business and faster pace of work, the impact of a period of absence from work is now more significant than before," said Minister of State for Defence, Associate Professor (Assoc Prof) Koo Tsai Kee, when explaining the rationale behind this recommendation.

Assoc Prof Koo added that the recommendation put forth by the committee reflected the ever changing new-world work environment where NS men had to remain connected to their families and work contacts in order to sustain productivity.

Convened in March this year, RECORD V gathered feedback, suggestions and ideas from NS men, their wives and employers through focus group discussions, a unit visit and an email survey, before formulating the recommendations.

These include increasing the combat allowance of NS men, introducing faster and larger rank increments as well as revising the criteria and distribution of the NSmen of the Year Award to better recognise those holding junior appointments.

These recommendations fall into five key areas identified by the committee: the rising aspirations of NSmen, the importance of leadership, fitness, globalisation and its increased work demands, as well as cohesion building.

Not all of the recommendations are directed at NS men alone. The committee realises that the family provides invaluable support in ensuring that NSmen remain committed to defence and ICT.

Hence, the committee has recommended that NS men who have performed well should be rewarded with vouchers to visit defence and National Education-related attractions like the Singapore Discovery Centre and SAF chalets for their families.

Among those to welcome this idea is Ms Corinne Foo, 40.

"This is a great way to encourage the support structure of the family. The vouchers serve not only to reward the NSman for his hard work but is also a direct affirmation of the family's efforts," said Ms Foo whose husband, Lieutenant-Colonel Lawrence Goh, is a brigade commander.

Ms Foo added that NSmen who were awarded the vouchers could use them to spend quality time with their wives and children - time which they might have missed out on while away doing ICT.

Another key recommendation by RECORD V is aimed at encouraging fitness in NSmen and helping them train for the Individual Physical Proficiency Test (IPPT). There will be better equipment at existing fitness corners in public housing estates with clearly demarcated routes for the 2.4km run.

"The physical fitness of our NSmen is another area that was extensively discussed and the focus was on how to better encourage them to keep fit and train for IPPT, given that some may find it challenging to take time out to train amidst busy lives," said Assoc Prof Koo.

Ms Indranee Rajah, an MP for Tanjong Pagar GRC and member of RECORD V, said she understood how difficult it was to keep fit without easy access to fitness facilities.

Ms Rajah said she was inspired by the idea for new fitness corners when she took the IPPT during a visit to the Army Fitness Centre in April last year. At that time, she was also very busy with work. She felt that "NSmen could face similar challenges and time constraints in keeping fit".

Summing up the aim of the recommendations, Assoc Prof Koo said: "Our recommendations are not meant to fully compensate the sacrifices made by our NSmen. Rather, the recommendations are meant as a simple and tangible means of expressing our nation's gratitude to them."

27 Aug 09 - RECORD V Unveils Recommendations to Recognise NSmen's Contributions to Singapore's Defence

11 Sep 09 - DPM Teo accepts RECORD V Recommendations

11 Sep 09 - National Servicemen to enjoy more perks and greater convenience with RECORD V initiatives